At some point over the last summer I started collecting anatomical heart designs after I found a necklace shaped like one in the Pacific Science Center. A heart, after all, is not heart-shaped. In design, an anatomical heart is a scientific representation of an emotional metaphor. Blame Sherlock or Frankenstein MD or Hannibal for encouraging this aesthetic, but I am enjoying decorating my new place with vintage culinary and medical drawings.

It’s that time again! As I’ve written before, Halloween has exploded into the Japanese food scene. Ten years ago, there were–as to be expected–barely any Halloween specials or goods. An increasingly large cultural shift toward Halloween as popular (children’s) holiday began sometime around 2010. While some of the shift was motivated by consumer demand, the ramped up…

Last year’s Halloween-themed pumpkin-flavored Mister Donuts doughnuts were delicious. This year, they’ve added a ghost and Hello Kitty shapes, and it appears that the batter is normal but the icing is kabocha-chocolate flavored.

In a country full of pumpkin-spice everything, I found special Halloween Kit Kats in Seattle, and they were somehow not pumpkin flavored. The American Halloween Kit Kats this year are orange-colored white chocolate abominations, as they apparently are every year.

Every year, I like to do a Halloween-in-Japan post to track the increasing popularity of the holiday and see how Japanese marketers and people celebrate it. Since I’m Stateside this year, I’d like you to help!

This is a bit ぎりぎり since Halloween is right around the corner, but if you are in Kanazawa or will be there this weekend for Halloween festivities, be sure to try the pumpkin dorayaki at Koshiyama Kanseido.

Last year, Kit Kat introduced special pumpkin cheesecake flavor for Halloween. Although I liked it quite a bit, I was a little confused as to why the package described pumpkin cheesecake as a “traditional Halloween food.” This year, Kit Kat opted for a new limited-time Halloween flavor, Pumpkin Pudding (パンプキンプリン). Let’s compare: 2011: 2012: